STATE COLLEGE, Pa., Sept. 7, 2002 - The Nittany Lion men's cross country team got off to a good start to the season as they hosted the Spiked Shoe Cross Country Meet at the Blue and White Golf Courses on a gorgeous State College morning.

The Lions took second place overall with a team score of 79, right behind a tough Oklahoma State team that posted a score of 25, their top seven runners finishing within the top 15 of the field. Rounding out the top five of the 20-team field was Bucknell in third with 120, Youngstown State with 137, and Millersville with 160.

The bulk of Penn State's scoring was done by a strong group of underclassmen. Pacing the Nittany Lions was freshman standout Dan Mazzocco (Pittsburgh, Pa.) who finished seventh overall with a time of 26:35.33. Next for the Lions was senior Josh Loren (Waterford, Pa.), 13th overall with a mark of 26:54.96. Freshman Dorian McDonald (Bethlehem, Pa.), sophomores Joel Moceri (Reading, Pa.) and Chris Foster (Severna Park, Md.), and senior Mike Enwright (Jamison, Pa.) and junior Scott Munro (South Park, Pa.) rounded out the scoring for Penn State.

Head Coach Harry Groves was happy with the performance of his underclassmen on the day. "The freshman did a great job of filling some gaps," Groves said. "They certainly made a difference today."

Penn State is next in action on Sept. 21 as they travel to the James Madison Open.